S3E44: Seattle Colleges Conversations with! International Student Khin Thida Win of Myanmar

In this our forty-fourth episode of Season 3, Seattle Colleges host Evan Franulovich interviews international student Khin Thida Win of Myanmar about her experience here at Seattle Colleges and about life in the United States. 

1:19 - Meet Khin!

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Transcript

Evan Franulovich   0:05  
Welcome to Seattle Colleges International Programs and our show 'Conversations with!', where we talk to people that help you understand how you too, can be an international student in the United States and why Seattle Colleges should be your first choice. We'll talk to students and staff and agents and government folks, all kinds of people about what you can expect when you're getting ready to apply or travel here, what you'll experience while you're with us, and how it can all lead to an amazing life. Don't forget to check out the Seattle Colleges International Programs website at intl.seattlecolleges.edu where you can find a treasure trove of information about the school, the programs here and best of all, fill out and submit your application. Again, that's intl.seattlecolleges.edu.

Evan Franulovich  1:04  
Hey everybody! Welcome back to Seattle Colleges 'Conversations with!' We're here at Seattle Central College with our I don't know how many I've had now, maybe three or four guests from Myanmar, but we have another so welcome to the show. 

Khin Thida Win  1:24  
Thank you. 

Evan Franulovich  1:25  
Do you want to tell everybody who you are, what you're studying, how long you've been here, and where you're from?

Khin Thida Win  1:36  
Thank you for having me for today. 

Evan Franulovich  1:38  
Sure, yeah. 

Khin Thida Win  1:38  
And this is Khin Thida Win. This is my Burmese name, but as a short name you can call me Manu as well. I am from Burma. I was born and raised in Kalay in Sagaing division in Myanmar, which is a small town surrounded by peaceful mountains. 

Evan Franulovich  2:02  
Nice. 

Khin Thida Win  2:03  
And I am here at Seattle Central College since September 2023. 

Evan Franulovich  2:11  
Are you graduating now? 

Khin Thida Win  2:13  
Maybe two more quarters. 

Evan Franulovich  2:15  
Okay, cool. 

Khin Thida Win  2:15  
And then I'm gonna graduate. 

Evan Franulovich  2:17  
Wow, getting close. 

Khin Thida Win  2:19  
Getting close. 

Evan Franulovich  2:21  
I know some of the big cities, but is it in the north part?

Khin Thida Win  2:28  
Kalay is kind of like north west end part of Sagaing. It's located at the western part of Myanmar. 

Evan Franulovich  2:36  
Okay. 

Khin Thida Win  2:36  
It's connected to the chain mountains. 

Evan Franulovich  2:40  
Very cool. So how many people live in your village, your town? 

Khin Thida Win  2:46  
It's a lot.

Evan Franulovich  2:49  
Like 10s of 1000s of people? 

Khin Thida Win  2:52  
Yeah. 

Evan Franulovich  2:53  
Okay, so it's pretty good size. 

Khin Thida Win  2:54  
That's true. 

Evan Franulovich  2:55  
Very cool. What do you miss most about home right now?

Khin Thida Win  3:00  
Burmese food. And my mom's cooking and our culture, and also my family.

Evan Franulovich  3:08  
Yeah, of course. Is anybody come to visit you?

Khin Thida Win  3:12  
Well, my husband is with me right now. 

Evan Franulovich  3:14  
Cool. 

Khin Thida Win  3:17  
I'm F-1, and he's F-2, so we're living together.

Evan Franulovich  3:22  
Well, that's a really interesting thing that you said, so we'll have to come back to that. I want to know about when you got your visa and how you got it. But before we do that, you first mentioned food. You missed the food. 

Khin Thida Win  3:35  
Yeah. 

Evan Franulovich  3:36  
No good Burmese restaurants in Seattle?

Khin Thida Win  3:41  
There's no Burmese restaurants at all.

Evan Franulovich  3:44  
None? 

Khin Thida Win  3:45  
None. 

Evan Franulovich  3:45  
This sounds like a business opportunity. 

Khin Thida Win  3:47  
Yeah, business opportunity. But in Portland, there's a few Burmese restaurants. So last time when I visited Portland in Oregon, I ate some Burmese food. 

Evan Franulovich  3:47  
Wow. 

Khin Thida Win  3:47  
It was really tasty after one year. 

Evan Franulovich  3:58  
And it was legitimate, really good? 

Khin Thida Win  4:06  
That's true. It's really good. Tea salad, Mohinga, Nan Gyi Thoke.

Evan Franulovich  4:12  
Wow, I don't think I've ever had Burmese food. I've had Thai food, is it similar to Thai?

Khin Thida Win  4:19  
It's not that similar to Thai, our food is kind of savory, sour, spicy. Thai food is a little bit sweet, I guess. Yeah, Pad Thai and all this stuff are a little bit sweet. Our food is kind of savory and spicy, it's very tasty. 

Evan Franulovich  4:37  
Well, go to Portland, then if you need some of your food, I guess. How did you get to Portland?

Khin Thida Win  4:46  
My cousin is in Portland, and then when I was taking a vacation, me and my uncle, their family, we visited there. 

Evan Franulovich  4:56  
Oh, in a car?  

Khin Thida Win  4:57  
In a car. There is one, not the ocean but... I just forgot the name right now.

Evan Franulovich  5:09  
In Portland, coming through the city is the Willamette River, and then it meets up with the Columbia River. 

Khin Thida Win  5:15  
Okay. 

Evan Franulovich  5:15  
Is that what you're talking about, or are you talking about the coast?

Khin Thida Win  5:19  
I think the coast it's kind of like a beach, but I forgot the name.

Evan Franulovich  5:24  
Is it in Oregon? 

Khin Thida Win  5:26  
Yeah, it's in Oregon. 

Evan Franulovich  5:27  
Cannon Beach?

Khin Thida Win  5:28  
Cannon Beach, exactly.

Evan Franulovich  5:31  
It's very popular. 

Khin Thida Win  5:32  
We went there, it was very pleasant. 

Evan Franulovich  5:36  
That's cool. I grew up on the Oregon coast. 

Khin Thida Win  5:38  
Oh, really? 

Evan Franulovich  5:38  
Yeah, I grew up in Florence, which is down the coast, quite a ways from Cannon Beach. 

Khin Thida Win  5:43  
Oh, wow. 

Evan Franulovich  5:44  
I've been all up and down the coast. 

Khin Thida Win  5:46  
You're brought up by ocean, I'm brought up by mountains.

Evan Franulovich  5:50  
Yeah, I love the mountains. The nice thing about the coast, if you live on the coast, is there are the Coastal Mountains, which are right next to us, and then you can actually get to the Cascades within just a couple hours of driving. So it's kind of a nice place to grow up. 

Khin Thida Win  6:07  
That's so cool. 

Evan Franulovich  6:08  
If you have a car. 

Khin Thida Win  6:10  
Oh, yeah. 

Evan Franulovich  6:10  
If you don't have a car, it's hard to get around. 

Khin Thida Win  6:12  
Okay. 

Evan Franulovich  6:13  
That's cool. All right, so let's go back a little bit to when you lived in Myanmar, you were in a public or private school?

Khin Thida Win  6:25  
I was in a public school. 

Evan Franulovich  6:27  
You were? 

Khin Thida Win  6:28  
Yeah, government public school. So we normally, we learn four subjects, Math, English, and then Burmese, Myanmar and science, those are the main subjects that we learn when we are young. And then when we go to high school, they add more subjects, biology, chemistry and stuff like that.

Khin Thida Win  6:26  
Do you go in a particular direction towards a particular field, or is it always more general? 

Khin Thida Win  6:27  
More general. 

Evan Franulovich  6:27  
Okay, cool. So you graduated? 

Khin Thida Win  6:27  
Actually, not really. Because I was also attending electrical engineering back in Myanmar, but in our country, in order to have bachelor degree, you have to attend six years. So I was in my fourth year when the COVID and the military cope happen. 

Evan Franulovich  6:27  
Gotcha. 

Khin Thida Win  6:27  
So I wasn't finished with my degree yet.

Evan Franulovich  6:27  
But you did finish high school? 

Khin Thida Win  6:27  
High school, and half of the bachelor. 

Evan Franulovich  7:02  
Gotcha. So did your family recommend that you come to the US to go to school? Was it a dream of yours to come to the US, or did you apply to Canada, Australia?

Khin Thida Win  7:43  
Okay, actually, this is not the first one that I applied to. So the first one that I apply to was University of Melbourne, Australia. Yeah, and Monash University in Australia, because my other sister is there. So I was really hoping to apply and to go there. 

Evan Franulovich  8:03  
Sure. 

Khin Thida Win  8:03  
But the bad thing is, they didn't deny me and didn't accept me either, so I was stuck hoping and waiting. 

Evan Franulovich  8:12  
You mean you were waiting to hear from the university?

Khin Thida Win  8:16  
Yes, from the university. They didn't accept my application, and also didn't deny that as well. And I sent them emails, but no reply. And then it's been three months, and then my mom told me that her relatives are in Tulsa, Oklahoma, so my mom said, 'Why don't you apply to the US, not specifically in Oklahoma, why not?' And I said, 'Okay, why not.' And then I searched, because I was in the STEM field, so I was searching in Google, and I heard that this place is good for the STEM field.

Evan Franulovich  8:56  
When you say this place, we're talking about Seattle or Seattle Colleges?

Khin Thida Win  9:01  
Seattle the city. So I was like, 'Okay, I'm gonna try this one.' And then I was trying to apply to the school, and then Seattle Central College, they are so fast. I just applied, and then two days later they're like, boom, you got an acceptance letter. I was like, 'What? I just applied.' Yeah, just two days or three days later, they are so fast, so big applause to the admission team. 

Evan Franulovich  9:28  
Nice. Do you know why we're so fast? 

Khin Thida Win  9:32  
I don't really know.

Evan Franulovich  9:34  
Well, one of the reasons is because community colleges in general are open enrollment institutions, so we don't have the same elevated set of screening that say a university would have, we don't have you write an essay that we have to read through. We don't have you give us SAT scores. You know, it's a little more straightforward. So if you're wondering, like, why is it so fast? Don't worry, it's because of our process. And generally, we accept students from all over the world, from different ages, different backgrounds. So maybe, for example, you went to school, but then you dropped out, and you worked for 10 years, but now you really want to go back and get your degree. A lot of people will come to community colleges to do that first part before transferring to a university, because schedules are a lot more flexible, but also it's a lot more affordable to get those first two years. 

Khin Thida Win  10:37  
And also small classes, so it's very good to connect with your professor.

Evan Franulovich  10:42  
What's been your biggest class? How many people have been in your biggest class? 

Khin Thida Win  10:46  
Physics class, which is going to be 30. 

Evan Franulovich  10:49  
Okay, that's still pretty small. 

Khin Thida Win  10:51  
That's pretty small. 

Evan Franulovich  10:52  
And your smallest? 

Khin Thida Win  10:56  
Smallest class gonna be 20. 

Evan Franulovich  10:58  
Okay, 20, that's about right. 

Khin Thida Win  11:00  
Yeah, chemistry class. 

Evan Franulovich  11:01  
Yeah, small class sizes are nice. Get a little more attention. Do you get to know your professors? 

Khin Thida Win  11:07  
Yep, a lot. We are keeping in touch with our professor because there's only a little bit of students. So at the end of the class, the professor remembered all of our names.

Evan Franulovich  11:21  
So what was your major again?

Khin Thida Win  11:24  
I was attending associate of science. 

Evan Franulovich  11:27  
In general?

Khin Thida Win  11:28  
Just in general, but planning to take electrical maybe.

Evan Franulovich  11:34  
You haven't decided?

Khin Thida Win  11:35  
I haven't decided. 

Evan Franulovich  11:36  
Well, that's a good place to start actually. Do you know where you know where you want to transfer? 

Khin Thida Win  11:42  
Well, I am starting to apply to universities here in Seattle.

Evan Franulovich  11:49  
Yeah. Which schools?

Khin Thida Win  11:52  
Seattle U, Seattle Pacific and UDub.

Evan Franulovich  11:56  
Okay, so you're hitting them all. 

Khin Thida Win  11:58  
Yeah. 

Evan Franulovich  11:59  
All the UDubs, or just Seattle? Because there's Bothell and Tacoma as well. 

Khin Thida Win  12:03  
Bothell and Seattle. 

Evan Franulovich  12:04  
Very cool. Did you consider schools outside of Seattle, or you want to stay in Seattle?

Khin Thida Win  12:12  
Well, I was thinking about that lately. I was thinking about moving to another state to explore, and at the same time, I'm also getting used to and familiar with this state. Yeah, I'm 50-50 right now.

Evan Franulovich  12:31  
Cool. Well, when you think about your transfer options, and you've got some good ones there, always ask the institution you're looking at whether they have transfer scholarships. I think the ones you mentioned do have transfer scholarships. So that works in your favor. We've had a number of students transfer to, say Seattle Pacific University, and they're pretty generous with their transfer scholarships. I think Seattle University also has something as well. So yeah, those are all good choices. 

Khin Thida Win  13:01  
That's great. 

Evan Franulovich  13:03  
I was going to ask you, so you only applied to Seattle Colleges?

Khin Thida Win  13:10  
No, I was applying to Lake Washington. 

Evan Franulovich  13:15  
Oh, yeah. 

Khin Thida Win  13:16  
And Seattle Central, and then, at first I applied to North Seattle. 

Evan Franulovich  13:22  
Oh, sure. 

Khin Thida Win  13:23  
And then I moved to here, I transfered here. 

Evan Franulovich  13:26  
So you actually started over there? 

Khin Thida Win  13:28  
Yeah. 

Evan Franulovich  13:28  
Oh, did you do a quarter or two?

Khin Thida Win  13:30  
Not really, on the first day I just switched to here. 

Evan Franulovich  13:31  
So it can be done easily. 

Khin Thida Win  13:35  
That's true. And then I applied to Shoreline.

Evan Franulovich  13:38  
Cool. And did you hear from those schools as well?

Khin Thida Win  13:49  
Yeah, but I heard that Seattle Colleges have three campuses, and kind of like the biggest. So I wanted to attend here.

Khin Thida Win  13:56  
Yeah, it's true. I mean, what do you think the advantage of that is of having three different campuses?

Khin Thida Win  14:04  
Yeah, so the good thing is, we can be concurrent students here at North, South, Central, and then the biggest thing is we can do tuition adjustment. But if you're attending classes at the other colleges, they don't have tuition adjustment. So if I'm taking some classes at North and currently taking classes here (Central), then I can make tuition adjustment. That mean they're gonna adjust all of my tuition fee, so I don't have to pay insurance two times.

Evan Franulovich  14:40  
Yeah, that's cool. 

Khin Thida Win  13:56  
Yeah, that's the good, the best thing.

Evan Franulovich  13:59  
So you've been here for quite a while. What's been your favorite class so far?

Khin Thida Win  14:43  
My favorite class is math. 

Evan Franulovich  14:52  
Oh, really? 

Khin Thida Win  14:54  
The professor is so nice, and the professor has so many office hours, and he's so nice. 

Evan Franulovich  15:05  
Who is that?

Khin Thida Win  15:07  
Samuel. 

Evan Franulovich  15:08  
Shout out to Samuel.

Khin Thida Win  15:12  
It's really nice. 

Evan Franulovich  15:12  
Cool. That's great. I rarely hear math as being a favorite class. So that's great to hear you say that. 

Khin Thida Win  15:18  
That's true. 

Evan Franulovich  15:19  
So you're in Burma, you decide you get accepted, and then how easy is it to get the visa? That's always the big question.

Khin Thida Win  15:30  
That's true. So back in 2023 the embassy wasn't that strict at that time. So after I got my acceptance tech letter, I booked my appointment at Myanmar in Yangon. And then at the time was when it's so straight. So I got appointment two weeks later. 

Evan Franulovich  15:53  
Oh, that's great. 

Khin Thida Win  15:57  
I got an appointment in June, and then I went with my mom, and then they didn't ask me a lot. They asked me three or four questions, and then he said, 'Yeah, you're good.' 

Evan Franulovich  16:13  
'You're good.' 

Khin Thida Win  16:16  
Actually at that time, I didn't want to pass the interview. 

Evan Franulovich  16:19  
You didn't?

Khin Thida Win  16:54  
I didn't want to, because at the time, I already had a husband. I had to leave my husband. 

Evan Franulovich  17:03  
Yeah, yeah. 

Khin Thida Win  16:28  
So at the time, I don't want to. I probably thought they're gonna reject me, because there is a line in front of me and they are being rejected. Like, 'Sorry, here's your passport.' I was like, 'Okay, now's my time, I'm gonna get rejected.' And I was like, answering the question. And then she said, 'You're good.' And I was confused. I didn't grab my passport because I had to leave the passport. I grabbed my I-20 and stuff, and my mom said, 'Are you upset?' Because my face so so upset like this. 

Khin Thida Win  17:06  
She thought you got rejected. 

Khin Thida Win  17:07  
That's true. And I passed.

Evan Franulovich  17:25  
So wild. But didn't you know ahead of time that your husband could get an F-2 visa?

Khin Thida Win  17:25  
Yeah. 

Evan Franulovich  17:25  
You did?

Khin Thida Win  17:25  
I did, but at the time, I didn't apply for him yet. 

Evan Franulovich  17:26  
Oh, you didn't. 

Khin Thida Win  17:27  
I didn't at that time. 

Evan Franulovich  17:29  
Oh, just so the listeners know if you have a son or daughter or husband or maybe both, you generally can, when you show your financial statement, you just show more money that so that you can prove that you can support them. But you didn't do that at the time. 

Khin Thida Win  17:48  
At the that time, I didn't do that. And then when I when I moved here, I did the F-2. 

Evan Franulovich  17:51  
Once you arrived? 

Khin Thida Win  17:55  
When I arrived, applying to the F-2. It was also quite fast when I applied for the F-2 and then we have to show a different band statement, and then all of the things. And then he applied.

Evan Franulovich  18:12  
So he stayed behind when you left, yeah, that's hard. 

Khin Thida Win  18:15  
It is. And he I was here September, 2023 and then he was here 2024, July. So that's quite a while. Yeah, that's true, almost a year.

Khin Thida Win  18:29  
That's so rough. 

Khin Thida Win  18:30  
It is rough. 

Evan Franulovich  18:31  
But it is kind of an adventure, too. I was living in China with my wife, and my wife was done. She was like, 'I'm going home.' She had some stuff that she needed to deal with at home. And so she goes, 'if you want to stay, you stay. But I'm heading home.' And I'm like, all right, I wanted to finish my contract, so she went back to the United States, and I stayed in China for another year. 

Khin Thida Win  18:54  
Oh, wow. 

Evan Franulovich  18:54  
And so I know what it's like to be a part. It has its challenges, for sure. but I just tried to make it the best adventure I could, and just did a lot of traveling. Did you did you do stuff like that? Did you just explore? How did you spend that time apart?

Khin Thida Win  19:17  
Oh, well, most of my time studying. 

Evan Franulovich  19:19  
Oh, of course. 

Khin Thida Win  19:20  
Studying and working. 

Evan Franulovich  19:23  
Yeah, let's talk about work, because we know each other from work. Has this been your only job since you got here? Or did you have a different job? 

Khin Thida Win  19:33  
I have a different job. 

Evan Franulovich  19:35  
Okay, so was it a student on campus job? 

Khin Thida Win  19:37  
So I have a student on campus job, and I have a work permit so I also work outside of the campus.

Evan Franulovich  19:46  
How on earth can she...? I'm asking you the listener, how can she work off campus? Can you tell them how that happens? 

Khin Thida Win  19:54  
Okay, so there is application called Temporary Protected Status, which is for designated countries, and Burma, Myanmar is one of them. 

Evan Franulovich  20:04  
Yes. 

Khin Thida Win  20:04  
So I applied to TPS, I got approved. So they gave me the social and my work permit, yes. So with that work permit and social, I can work outside of the job. 

Evan Franulovich  20:14  
There you go. 

Khin Thida Win  20:14  
And I also work as a front desk here in Seattle Central.

Evan Franulovich  20:19  
So you have two jobs or just one? 

Khin Thida Win  20:20  
Two jobs. 

Evan Franulovich  20:21  
Oh, you do have two jobs still.

Khin Thida Win  20:22  
I do.

Evan Franulovich  20:22  
 Okay, cool. Yeah, so she's on a special status because she's from a country that has that. So you could look into it to see if your country's on that list. And the laws change every day. 

Khin Thida Win  20:34  
That's true. 

Evan Franulovich  20:35  
Well, that's cool. And you know, I learned something about this status today. Sorry, I learned that you don't have to carry a full load of classes if you don't want to. Is that true? 

Khin Thida Win  20:46  
That's true. 

Evan Franulovich  20:46  
So do you generally carry a full load, or do you have a reduced load? 

Khin Thida Win  20:51  
I generally carry a full load because I want to finish within two years.

Evan Franulovich  20:55  
Yeah, that makes sense. You can carry a smaller load but it takes longer. 

Khin Thida Win  20:59  
Yeah. 

Evan Franulovich  21:00  
And in the end, you're going to end up spending the money eventually anyways. 

Khin Thida Win  21:05  
That's true. 

Evan Franulovich  21:03  
Just get it done. Wow, that's really cool. Okay, so you applied, and once you had your visa, how long did you wait before you got into a plane to get over here?

Khin Thida Win  21:18  
After one week, I got my visa. So it's probably the first of June, and then my school started this September. 

Evan Franulovich  21:30  
Okay, so you came for fall. 

Khin Thida Win  21:31  
I came for fall. So I booked an airplane ticket, and I came here in August. 

Evan Franulovich  21:38  
Okay. 

Khin Thida Win  21:39  
At the very end of August.

Evan Franulovich  21:41  
And when you fly from Myanmar, do you go towards Doha, Dubai, or do you go towards Singapore?

Khin Thida Win  21:49  
So I booked a Korean Airline, so from Yangon to Korea, Korea to Seattle. 

Evan Franulovich  21:57  
Interesting. How long was that flight?

Khin Thida Win  22:01  
Almost a day. There's also laying hours in the airport, it's like eight hours. 

Evan Franulovich  22:10  
Oh, yeah, eight hours in Korea. 

Khin Thida Win  22:11  
That's true. 

Evan Franulovich  22:12  
Did you do anything, or did you hang out at the airport?

Khin Thida Win  22:16  
In my ticket, I got three hour buffet lunch. So I went to the lunch. 

Evan Franulovich  22:20  
That's cool.

Khin Thida Win  22:21  
I went to the buffet, and I hang out in the airport. There's a lot of shops over there, so I bought a lot of skincare.

Evan Franulovich  22:31  
Yeah, Korea is a great place to do that. 

Khin Thida Win  22:34  
That's true. 

Evan Franulovich  22:34  
Was it your first time in Korea? 

Khin Thida Win  22:35  
Yeah, that's my first time.

Evan Franulovich  22:38  
Was this the first time you had left your country? 

Khin Thida Win  22:41  
This is my first time that I left my country. 

Evan Franulovich  22:44  
Were you nervous? 

Khin Thida Win  22:45  
I was so nervous and also very excited, and also very overwhelming.

Evan Franulovich  22:49  
It's a lot. 

Khin Thida Win  22:50  
It's a lot. 

Evan Franulovich  22:51  
So how did you deal with that stress? What did you do to kind of work through that?

Khin Thida Win  22:55  
Well, actually, I'm a Christian, so back in Myanmar, even though I trust my religion, I don't usually pray, because my father covers all of our financial issues, so I don't have to worry, nothing. So I didn't have pressure or stress at the time. But when I came here, there's a lot of things I had to deal with, and then my Christian faith helped me when things are not possible. Yeah, I always say my faith.

Evan Franulovich  23:36  
No matter what your faith, that's a great attack really. That's a really nice way to attack stress, and I just have a little faith and then pray. It's a good thing. 

Khin Thida Win  23:45  
Yeah, that's true. 

Evan Franulovich  23:45  
Very cool. I love it. So you got here, what did you do for housing? Are you living with family? 

Khin Thida Win  23:51  
I was living with my relatives, my auntie from my mom's side, so I live with them. 

Evan Franulovich  23:58  
How long has she lived in the US?

Khin Thida Win  24:00  
About a decade. 

Evan Franulovich  24:02  
Oh, a long time. What does she do for work? 

Khin Thida Win  24:07  
 She works as a sushi chef. 

Evan Franulovich  24:10  
Cool, sushi chef. So you get sushi pretty regularly?

Khin Thida Win  24:16  
Yeah, we got sushi, but we are getting bored of sushi.

Evan Franulovich  24:21  
 I don't know if I could bored of sushi, I think it's great. 

Khin Thida Win  24:24  
Yeah. 

Evan Franulovich  24:25  
That's really fun. 

Khin Thida Win  24:26  
She brings a box of sushi every night. 

Evan Franulovich  24:29  
Every night? 

Khin Thida Win  24:30  
Yeah, we tell her 'Do not bring at all.' 

Evan Franulovich  24:35  
Okay, so of the other types of food you can find in the United States, what is your favorite? 

Khin Thida Win  24:43  
Probably Thai. 

Evan Franulovich  24:45  
Thai food? I love Thai food. 

Khin Thida Win  24:47  
Yeah, the Tom Yum soup kind of reminds me of some soup, I really like it. 

Evan Franulovich  25:01  
Oh, yeah. So you have those two jobs. So the job you have on campus, how did you find it? 

Khin Thida Win  25:14  
Well, last summer, I was going to my class, and I saw a poster on our bulletin board. 

Evan Franulovich  25:24  
Okay. 

Khin Thida Win  25:25  
They said 'We are hiring.' So I applied it, and got the job.

Evan Franulovich  25:32  
So people might wonder, what was the interview process like?

Khin Thida Win  25:37  
So I had to write a cover letter and all of the things. And after I submitted it, it took two weeks. And after that, the manager told me that we're going to have an interview for you in Zoom. 

Evan Franulovich  25:55  
Okay. 

Khin Thida Win  25:57  
She sent me a link, and then at that specific time, I opened zoom, and there were three managers from the south, north and center. I was shocked, and I froze. They asked me, 'How are you doing?' I was like, 'Good.'

Evan Franulovich  26:18  
So scary.

Khin Thida Win  26:20  
But they're very nice. 

Evan Franulovich  26:21  
That's good. And you relaxed and made it through the interview. Had you ever had a job in Myanmar?

Khin Thida Win  26:30  
No. 

Evan Franulovich  26:30  
So this was your first job. 

Khin Thida Win  26:32  
This is my first job. 

Evan Franulovich  26:33  
That's awesome. 

Khin Thida Win  26:34  
Yeah, so back in Myanmar, usually the Asian families, how they go is only the father does the job, the mom is the dependent, the housewife. Things are changing lately, but that is the old traditional way. My dad wouldn't let me do things, that's not good. So when I came here, I learned a lot of things, and that is a very good experience for my life.

Evan Franulovich  27:09  
I think that's gonna make you super confident. 

Khin Thida Win  27:11  
That's true. 

Evan Franulovich  27:12  
That's awesome. What's been your biggest surprise about America? I mean, most people have seen America in the movies or whatever, I mean, was there something that really shocked you when you got here?

Khin Thida Win  27:25  
Not particularly, but compared to Myanmar, what I was shock about is the culture shock and also the language. Language is a big one, even though I learned English in Myanmar, but boy speaking in speaking every day at work a store is so scary.

Evan Franulovich  27:50  
It's so scary. Yeah, did you have to begin your education with the language institute? 

Khin Thida Win  27:56  
Oh, no, I did the IELTS. I started with the English 101.

Evan Franulovich  28:05  
Perfect. Yeah, that's a recommendation for no matter where you are in the world, try to get your English score as high as you can before you come. 

Khin Thida Win  28:14  
That's true. 

Evan Franulovich  28:13  
Save you a little time and money. That's really good idea. But you definitely had to adjust when you got here.

Khin Thida Win  28:18  
That's true. Yeah, I used to be afraid to talk to anybody. I'm so afraid that they will misunderstand what I'm saying so I keep silent. 

Evan Franulovich  28:30  
Don't keep silent. So I'm curious, did you see many Americans in your hometown back in Myanmar?

Khin Thida Win  28:37  
Oh, yeah. 

Evan Franulovich  28:38  
You did? 

Khin Thida Win  28:39  
Yeah, in Yangon, and also in my high school. 

Evan Franulovich  28:42  
No, no, I mean, in your hometown. 

Khin Thida Win  28:43  
Oh, in my hometown, not a lot. 

Evan Franulovich  28:46  
Not really? 

Khin Thida Win  28:47  
Yeah, not a lot. Not in my hometown, but any other place, yes.

Evan Franulovich  28:50  
How far are you from Yangon? Is it a long way? 

Khin Thida Win  28:55  
It's a long way, if you're gonna take the airplane, it's gonna take you two hours. 

Evan Franulovich  28:59  
Oh, okay. 

Khin Thida Win  29:01  
With a bus, maybe 10 to 15 hours. 

Evan Franulovich  29:06  
Oh my gosh. 

Khin Thida Win  29:07  
Yeah. 

Evan Franulovich  29:08  
How did you get there? 

Khin Thida Win  29:09  
With a plane. 

Evan Franulovich  29:10  
Okay, I was gonna say much faster, for sure. All right, cool. There's a lot of activities on campus, there's student leadership, clubs. Do you participate in any of that?

Khin Thida Win  29:23  
Well, some of the classes time conflict with my work schedule. So if they are happening in this office, I try to participate. So last time they were doing the flower workshop. 

Evan Franulovich  29:38  
Oh, yeah. 

Khin Thida Win  29:38  
That was very cool. And I participated.

Evan Franulovich  29:41  
That's cool. Did you do anything like go to the snow tubing? 

Khin Thida Win  29:46  
Oh, not really. 

Evan Franulovich  29:48  
Not a lot of snow in Myanmar. 

Khin Thida Win  29:49  
That's true. 

Evan Franulovich  29:50  
Have you been up to the mountains yet?

Khin Thida Win  29:52  
Well, not really. 

Evan Franulovich  29:54  
You should go... 

Khin Thida Win  29:55  
I should go.

Evan Franulovich  29:57  
...experience that.

Khin Thida Win  29:59  
I was planning to go to Mount Rainier.

Evan Franulovich  30:01  
You should. It's so beautiful, and a lot of snow, that'd be great. What about scholarships? You know, a lot of students apply for scholarships. Did you apply for any?

Khin Thida Win  30:13  
I did apply for the scholarship last year.

Evan Franulovich  30:17  
Like the Foundation Scholarship?

Khin Thida Win  30:18  
Foundation Scholarship, that's happening every year during the winter quarter. 

Evan Franulovich  30:23  
Yeah. 

Khin Thida Win  30:24  
I applied to that one, but unfortunately, I didn't get it.

Evan Franulovich  30:28  
You applied twice and not got it either time?

Khin Thida Win  30:30  
Just once. 

Evan Franulovich  30:31  
Just once. Yeah. Did you apply this year?

Khin Thida Win  30:33  
Nope. 

Evan Franulovich  30:34  
Why not? 

Khin Thida Win  30:35  
Because I'm kind of the one person who's unlucky. I believe that it should not be for me. 

Evan Franulovich  30:45  
Well, the thing you guys should know is you can apply for it year after year after year. So if you don't get it the first time, don't let that deter you. Try again. 

Khin Thida Win  30:55  
Yeah. 

Evan Franulovich  30:55  
I mean, all they can say is no, of course. But usually it's like 50% of the students who apply get it, so your chances are pretty decent. What about like, Phi Theta Kappa? Have you been involved with that at all? 

Khin Thida Win  31:09  
Phi Theta Kappa? 

Evan Franulovich  31:11  
Do you know Phi Theta Kappa? 

Khin Thida Win  31:13  
What is that? 

Evan Franulovich  31:14  
I've done a whole podcast on it. So Phi Theta Kappa is a honor society for community college students. So they have lots of opportunities in there to learn to participate in leadership, but they also have their own scholarship.

Khin Thida Win  31:29  
Their own scholarship, I know. Oh, actually, sorry, I was one of the members. 

Evan Franulovich  31:36  
You are a member!

Khin Thida Win  31:39  
Yeah, but I'm not that active in the group.

Evan Franulovich  31:43  
Did you apply for any other scholarships? 

Khin Thida Win  31:45  
Not really. 

Evan Franulovich  31:47  
Well, you can. 

Khin Thida Win  31:50  
There's a lot of scholarships. 

Evan Franulovich  31:52  
And then there's the LewerMark scholarship. Did you apply for that? 

Khin Thida Win  31:54  
Oh, yeah, I did apply for that. But unfortunately...

Evan Franulovich  31:58  
All right, fair enough. So you have a husband here on an F-2 visa. Going back to that, what does he do with his time while he's here?

Khin Thida Win  32:07  
So mostly he's studying online. 

Evan Franulovich  32:12  
Okay. 

Khin Thida Win  32:12  
And also he's very into running, so he's doing a lot of exercises. He's going to gym, learning online, cooking. 

Evan Franulovich  32:24  
Cooking, is he good at cooking? 

Khin Thida Win  32:25  
He's pretty good. 

Evan Franulovich  32:25  
So he can make food from home? 

Khin Thida Win  32:27  
Yes, that's true. He's cooking better than mine. 

Evan Franulovich  32:31  
Yeah, is that right? 

Khin Thida Win  32:32  
Yeah. 

Evan Franulovich  32:32  
You gotta work on that, I guess. Yeah, I can cook. I just don't enjoy it as much as my wife. She enjoys cooking. And I mean, I do a good job when I do it. You hear that? That means it's Trivia Time. That means we ask you five questions just for fun. If you get them all right, you're on a wall of fame. If you missed one or two, then just cry yourself to sleep tonight. All right. First question is: If you want to travel to Canada or Mexico, what do you have to do with your I-20?

Khin Thida Win  33:10  
I will definitely go to Canada. And I'm going to apply for a Canadian visa with my I-20, because I really love Justin Bieber, and he was born in Canada. I want to explore his city. 

Evan Franulovich  33:26  
Well, you should, for sure. 

Khin Thida Win  33:27  
That's true. 

Evan Franulovich  33:28  
But what, as an international student, what do you have to do before you can leave the country with your I-20?

Khin Thida Win  33:35  
I'm gonna have my travel signature on my I-20, apply for the visa. 

Evan Franulovich  33:41  
Gotcha. There you go. Very good. All right. Question number two: We are a big town for sports, and one of the popular sports is football, or soccer. We have a team here, what's the name of our soccer team?

Khin Thida Win  34:01  
Ah, I know it. Can you give me a hint?

Evan Franulovich  34:08  
Starts with an S. The Seattle...?

Khin Thida Win  34:12  
*Unaudible*

Evan Franulovich  34:13  
The Seattle Sounders. 

Khin Thida Win  34:17  
Oh, yes, Seattle Sounders. Oh, my gosh.

Evan Franulovich  34:20  
It's the pressure. It's too much pressure. Question number three: If I need to keep a full load, a full schedule in order to maintain my visa, how many credits do I need to take?

Khin Thida Win  34:34  
12 credit as an international student, 7 in person, five online. 

Evan Franulovich  34:38  
There it is good answer. All right, let's say I want to change my class from one to another. What do I have to do?

Khin Thida Win  34:49  
Well, so if you want to swap your class, you can do it in your ctcLink, enroll the other class and swap it. If you've passed the registration period, you have to ask your professor, get the permission code and go to the registration. 

Evan Franulovich  35:16  
There you go. Look at that, very good answers. Okay, last question: What was the last movie that you went to see in the movie theater?

Khin Thida Win  35:26  
Oh, that will be probably back in Myanmar. 

Evan Franulovich  35:32  
Oh, really?

Khin Thida Win  35:32  
I haven't been to a movie theater here in Seattle yet.

Evan Franulovich  35:38  
You should do it. It's a cultural experience.

Khin Thida Win  35:42  
Back in Myanmar, I'm usually a person who watched Netflix a lot. 

Evan Franulovich  35:48  
You have Netflix in Myanmar? 

Khin Thida Win  35:50  
Yeah. 

Evan Franulovich  35:51  
Oh, with VPN? 

Khin Thida Win  35:54  
Yeah, with a VPN. 

Evan Franulovich  35:55  
Okay, I was just gotta say.

Khin Thida Win  35:58  
I don't remember, but in Netflix, I watched Stranger Things. 

Evan Franulovich  36:03  
Oh, yeah. 

Khin Thida Win  36:05  
And then the final season gonna be this year, 2025.

Evan Franulovich  36:10  
So do you guys watch at home? 

Khin Thida Win  36:13  
Yeah, I watch at home, and also I watch here as well.

Evan Franulovich  36:18  
Yeah, very good. And your husband likes the same kinds of stuff you do?

Khin Thida Win  36:21  
No, he doesn't like the movies that I like. I really like Sci Fi, and he kind of like more drama movies. 

Evan Franulovich  36:32  
Fair enough. 

Khin Thida Win  36:33  
Yeah,

Evan Franulovich  36:35  
Not to get too personal, but how did you meet your husband?

Khin Thida Win  36:38  
We are a high school lovers. 

Evan Franulovich  36:40  
Very nice. 

Khin Thida Win  36:41  
We attended the same high school in Mandalay.

Evan Franulovich  36:46  
Yeah, very cool. All right. Well, great. You did a great job. Didn't get the perfect score, so, you know, get your pillow out and wipe your eyes tonight. It'll be okay. But we like to end the show with a couple of things. For one, we like to have you speak a little bit in your first language. 

Khin Thida Win  37:06  
First language. 

Evan Franulovich  37:06  
And before we started rolling the video, you told me you actually have two. So what are the two languages you speak at home?

Khin Thida Win  37:15  
Back in Myanmar, I speak Chin and Burmese.

Evan Franulovich  37:18  
Very cool. Well, I think we've heard Burmese before, so she's gonna talk a little bit in Chin. 

Khin Thida Win  37:24  
Yeah. 

Evan Franulovich  37:25  
So yeah, that would be great. If you could do 10 or 20 seconds. That would be perfect. 

Khin Thida Win  37:30  
Okay. (*Khin Thida Win advice in Chin*)

Evan Franulovich  37:44  
Very cool. Now, if you speak to someone who doesn't speak your language, like they speak only Burmese, can you guys kind of understand each other? Is it closely related?

Khin Thida Win  37:54  
Within the Chin language? 

Evan Franulovich  37:56  
Yeah.

Khin Thida Win  37:58  
Some Chin are closely related, but in Chin, there's also main four. 

Evan Franulovich  38:04  
Oh, okay. 

Khin Thida Win  38:05  
So there are some similarities between that Chin and the other Chins. I understand some Chin, so we have to speak in Burmese.

Evan Franulovich  38:12  
Really? Interesting. Four different types, huh? 

Khin Thida Win  38:15  
The main four different types. 

Evan Franulovich  38:17  
And do they have different names?

Khin Thida Win  38:21  
Yeah, Tedim, Hakha, Falam, and Mindat Cho.

Evan Franulovich  38:28  
It must be depending on where you live.

Khin Thida Win  38:29  
Depends on where you live, and different culture. 

Evan Franulovich  38:33  
Yeah, very cool. Okay, and then the last thing, you've been here for a while, and you're going to be here a little while longer before you transfer, you've gone through the whole process. What advice would you give to someone back in your region, doesn't have to be Myanmar, could be Thai, or maybe someone from Bangladesh or something? What kind of advice would you give students that are thinking about maybe going to a community college or coming to the United States or whatever?

Khin Thida Win  39:00  
So yeah, so first of all, research the city or the state you want to study in. And also, if they choose community college, they are very smart, because for two years it's very affordable, and the classes are small. 

Evan Franulovich  39:20  
True. 

Khin Thida Win  39:21  
And after two years, you can transfer to a university. So I really like attending a community college. So apply to  different community colleges, and then choose the best one that you like. Do all of the visa process, but I heard that Myanmar is having difficulty getting appointments, but any other country is still good. The United States is very big, and has a lot of opportunities. It's the dreamland. 

Evan Franulovich  40:07  
Yeah, speaking of visas, it changes from day to day. So keep your eye on the government websites. Listen to US news sources, if you can, and just try to keep up to date on that. You're always welcome to reach out to us here at Seattle Colleges for questions or to just get an update on what's happening. We hope that as many people can come as possible. We are certainly doing what we can to encourage the government to be as cordial and hospitable to people from around the world, because we want people here that are representing of all cultures and countries, and we just love the diversity on our campuses, lots of different people to meet in different points of view, and they get to know us, it's such a great deal. I was an international student once, I loved it. 

Khin Thida Win  41:05  
Wow, that's cool. 

Evan Franulovich  41:05  
I went to Belgium, it was really a good experience. So I encourage anybody to give it a try if they can. And if you can't come to the US, don't let the deter you. You know, there's a lot of other great countries. Of course, we want you to come to the United States, but if you're just interested in being an international student, there are lots of places to choose from. So if you can't get here, consider your other options. You can still reach out to us, and we'll try to help you out however we can. So great to talk to you. I think this is the most we've ever talked together. 

Khin Thida Win  41:29  
Thank you. 

Evan Franulovich  41:29  
We work together, I always see her at the front desk. We hope that you'll be able to see your family, I know you miss them, so that would be great. Hi, Mom and Dad, If you're out there, you can watch this. They'll be able to watch this? Can they get YouTube?

Khin Thida Win  41:52  
Yeah, they can get YouTube. I'm gonna send them the link.

Evan Franulovich  41:55  
We'll send you the link. Awesome. Well, great. Have a great rest of the quarter, I know it's almost done. Are you done completely?

Khin Thida Win  42:02  
Tomorrow, I have one final exam. 

Evan Franulovich  42:03  
One more final exam, good deal. For you guys that are out there, thanks for listening. Remember, we're here every Wednesday. Come back. Don't forget to like, subscribe and share with everybody you know, we really want to get as many subscribers as possible. Spread the word about international education, about community colleges, and hopefully you'll come to Seattle Colleges. Bye, bye. Take care! 

Khin Thida Win  42:27  
Bye!

Evan Franulovich  42:31  
Conversations with! is painstakingly crafted for you by the Seattle Colleges International Programs department and supported by the lovely folks here on our campus. This show is produced and edited by me, Evan Franulovich. We welcome your emails and questions about coming to Seattle Colleges. Please reach out to us via our website or just give us a rating and a review on Apple podcasts as this helps others discover the show. Also, don't forget to follow us on Instagram, Facebook, TikTok or YouTube at Seattle Colleges Intl, that's Seattle Colleges Intl. And be sure to check out all of the shows here on 'Conversations with!' Thanks for listening, and we'll see you next week.